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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ball — a great time
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. saw — the tool
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. file — a line of people
  9. wind — moving air
  10. tube — a container
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. toast — bread
  13. tube — the underground
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. saw — the tool
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. ball — a dance
  20. file — a document
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. file — a tool
  23. mine — for digging
  24. temple — a place of worship

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com